INTERDISCIPLINARITY OF SOCIAL POLICY RESEARCH

<ns3:p>The article presents arguments for two proposals. First, a clear division between two meanings of social policy is proposed: as a practice and as a science. Social policy (polityka społeczna) should always mean practice: public policy in social protection, education etc. Research on social policy should be described separately as a social policy research (nauka o polityce społecznej). Second, arguments for interdisciplinarity of social policy research are presented. Social policy research involves various scientific disciplines and this is a strength and not a weakness of this reseach. A separate discipline „social policy” or „social policy research” would be a bad solution. Weakening, and not strengthening of bureaucratic divisions in Polish science should be pursued.</ns3:p>